Larger Asian companies have seen the benefits from improving their governance in investment and foreign expansion. Now smaller companies are also recognizing the advantages of compliance with international standards and starting to shine in our annual best Asian companies poll.

Disclosure rules are forcing issuers to consider listing outside the EU, reports Michael Evans. Switzerland's SWX sees an opportunity to win business from its European rivalsThe Swiss Exchange (SWX) has launched its first offensive in what promises to be a long battle to snatch Eurobond business away from London and Luxembourg. Last month, representatives of the exchange visited capital markets law firms in London in a bid to convince lawyers of the benefits to non-EU issuers of switching to SWX. The SWX sales pitch is based on new rules unveiled on November 15. These make a Swiss listing relatively easy at a time when Europe's transparency and prospectus directives will impose costly reporting requirements on companies listed in the EU.

China's economy is humming along in top gear but its domestic securities markets remain stuck in neutral. As the central government continues to struggle with financial reform, losses mount and systemic risk increases.

Korea

Josh Rosenberg's hobbies, which include Ashtanga Yoga, skiing and cycling, are a good grounding for the often frenetic and fast-paced world of hedge funds.

Electronic trading

When Patrice Blanc joined Fimat in 1989 the company was an upstart, even in France, where it had been formed just three years before at the same time as French futures and options exchange Matif (Marché à Terme International de France).

Pension funds welcome a new bond indexed to life expectancy which should cut the cost of matching a growing risk.

Barclays Capital has increased its staff by 30% to 7,000 in the past 18 months - and there's more to come. The objectives - more client contact and a broader product range - seem to be attainable. What's not so clear is whether increased revenues will outweigh the costs of this headlong expansion and how it will transform the firm's culture.